Task Force: Gamma

uvek · Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 5:00 pm Post subject: Bridge (Continuation)

"Co...bia .. Ha...ngton. We h.v. l....d safe.." crackled the bridge communicator.

Uvek looked to Calodan for confirmation "I assume that means they have landed safely." he said, uncertainty in his voice. "Systems are unstable at best, but somewhat better than before."

He watched as someone departed the Columbia. "A lifeform is moving away from the shuttle and settling some distance away. I cannot identify the commbadge signal. No one else has departed, and there is no movement from the irradiated site."

Captain David Brennon · Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 5:27 pm Post subject:

(OOC: I made a boo boo when trying to move parts of a conversation around to the proper sections of the story... so here we are. Continue the conversation from the first Bridge topic [http://usshartington.s2.bizhat.com/viewtopic.php?t=137] right here.)

McTavish smiled to himself. Yes, we truly are starting to think alike.

"Captain? Might I also suggest using the Willianette? She can better hold a geo-synchronous orbit than the Hartington.
I would also suggest an additional security team along should the crew of the Columbia run into any issues. The additional support would arrive much faster should it be needed.
And along with using the Williamette as a transporter relay we can use her as a sensor relay. The limited information we are getting from the Columbia, the probes and from the Williamette should give us a much more clear picture of what is happening down there.

The Captain nodded his head.

"I tend to agree. Mr. Uvek, Mr. McTavish, please take the Willamette out and hold a low orbit. Mr. Calodan, I'd like you to supervise the link between the runabouts and the Hartington's Main Computer."

Brennon tapped his combadge as he stood.

"Bridge to Engineering. Lieutenant Ghan, can you please have Cadets Walters and Mehvra-Kuplo report to the Runabout Willamette for an away mission."

The gruff voice of the Tellarite Engineer rang back over the comm.

"Delighted to, Captain."

The Captain looked to his Officers as he made his way over to the Science console.

"Maybe we'll get lucky on this one. Carry on everyone."

(Runabout Willamette away mission continued in thread marked Runabout Willamette).
_________________

Liam McTavish · Task Force Crewman Joined: 03 Sep 2009 Posts: 286

At the mention of his name, McTavish recorded the position of the Columbia on the planet below, book marked the meteorological data so he could pick up where he left off later, and cleared his panel before turning to the Ensign Flight Control Officer replacing him at the helm.
"I stand relieved, Ensign"
McTavish strode quickly to the Turbo Lift. A quick stop at his Quarters for his away bag and then to the Shuttle Bay.

uvek · Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 7:49 pm Post subject:

Uvek nodded at his captain. It was becoming his signature it seemed. "Aye sir." he responded. He motioned to ensign Phell, his fallback officer. Phell stepped smartly up and Uvek moved toward the turbolift. He waited for Ensign McTavish.

The lift doors opened, and Ensign Mrowl and the new counsellor exited. Uvek nodded politely in their direction, waited for them to move toward the captain's ready room, and ushered McTavish in. As the doors closed he called for the shuttlebay. The two men stood in silence for a moment before Uvek turned to the Watch officer.

"For the record, Mr. McTavish I felt your suggestion of using the planet's distortions had merit. However, it would be good for you to familiarize yourself with all the ship's systems before planning such a defense. It is clear from your presence here, that you are a progressive thinker. I trust that characteristic will be present when we enter the planet's atmosphere; we will no doubt need quick reflexes if we are to be successful."

Liam McTavish · Task Force Crewman Joined: 03 Sep 2009 Posts: 286

"Thank you, Sir. I will do my best." McTavish's mind snapped back to the business at hand.
"And your very correct Sir. I can make no excuses for my lack of knowledge. Neither the Merrimac or the Adelphi have the newest upgrades, and for that reason alone I should have been more diligent in learning the new systems, and the tactics that come with them. My time on the Pagh I spent mostly trying to keep my throat from being slit in my sleep and spent little time on the bridge."
An easy smile slid across McTavish face.
"Speaking of which I need to stop by my quarters for a moment to grab some gear. With your permission, Lieutenant?"

uvek · Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 10:32 pm Post subject:

"Crew quarters," said Uvek in response. He turned to the ensign as the the turbolift doors opened on the required deck. "I will await you in the runabout. Do not linger."

The doors closed behind the ensign and the lift continued on to the shuttle deck. Cadets Walters and Mehvra-Kuplo were an enigma to him. His studies were in the ship, not the crew. Until the unexpected reassignment of Major Ludwigsen and the marine contingent, security and personnel were not his pervue. He simply did not familarize himself with all the ship's contingent. That would change, he vowed to himself. That would change immediately. As Head of Security he would need to know as much about the crew as possible.

The turbolift slowed, then stopped. The doors opened and he crossed the short distance to the shuttlebay. Time to perform. He gathered himself and entered the shuttlebay proper.

Captain David Brennon · Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 7:59 pm Post subject:

The Captain noted the Willamette's departure via the science station before returning to the command chair. He looked to Lieutenant Calodan.

"Keep a close watch on the Willamette, transporter lock on the crew at all times, open com link, the works... this atmosphere is playing tricks on most of the Hartington's systems and I don't want to loose anyone."

He turned his attention to the newly arrived Flight Controller, Lieutenant Croft. Brennon motioned for the new officer to take his station.

"Lieutenant, nice of you to join us. Sadly you'll have to get right to work. We have two Runabout teams off ship at the moment. I'd like us to maintain a high orbit, well inside Transporter range of the orbiting runabout but clear enough so that the planet's properties do not interfere with our systems."

He stopped speaking briefly, smiling in that moment.

"Welcome aboard."
_________________

ArjimCalodan · Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 8:01 pm Post subject:

Calodan reviewed the information that was being relayed from both the probes and the Willamette. The entire situation put him ill at ease. Even with all of the special precautions put in place, sensors still didn't show a good picture of what was on the ground. As best he could tell, the away team had landed and appeared to have set off towards the Cardassians.

He decided it was time to report to the Captain. "Sir, using the Williamette and the probes, we still don't have a very clear picture of the surface. My attempts to raise the away team have so far been unsuccessful. It is my opinion that without moving the Hartington into a far lower orbit, we won't be able to maintain contact with the away team.
_________________

Captain David Brennon · Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 10:07 pm Post subject:

Lieutenant Uvek's voice calls out from across the void, static inurrupting parts of his transmission.

"Hartington, ~e ~ve six; count ~m six, ~fef~ms c~ing on the ~ay team. The lifef~m closest ~o the r~ab~t app~s to be ~etty ~icer ~ster. He is ~o dou~ ope~ting as sec~ for the ~eam. The ap~ac~ng group ap~rs to be other than Ca~sian. No i~ntif~on at this time. Bear in m~d, we are now beg~g to experience turbu~ce from the planet's atmo~ere."

The Captain frowned and scratched at his beard pensively. Sitting forward he addressed his Second Officer.

"Mr. Calodan, how much danger would we be putting the Hartington in if we took her into a lower orbit?"
_________________

ArjimCalodan · Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 10:19 pm Post subject:

"There are quite a few risks, sir. We'll need to maintain a geostationary orbit directly above the beam-out site in a low orbit. Our sensors and shields will be compromised by the interference from the planet's atmosphere and long range communications will be limited to the planet's surface. Also the cloak will be completely inoperable and our maneuverability will be severely hampered."

Calodan pause to allow the Captain time to absorb the info that was being presented to him.

"Sir, I believe if we were to go into a low enough orbit I maybe able to provide the Away Team a bit of a safety net beyond just restoring our communications. With your permission, I'd like to modify the Main Deflector to boost the Transporter. That, in combination with the stored copies of the Away Team's patterns and pattern enhancers on the surface should allow me to perform an emergency beamout should the need arise. I would have to pull the team one at a time, and reset the buffers manually between each transport, but I could have the entire team off the surface in 4 minutes."
_________________

Marek · Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 5:37 pm Post subject:

Croft nods to Captain Brennon.

"Thank you, sir, not a problem."

He quickly assumes the helm station, fingers flying over the controls.

Calodan pause to allow the Captain time to absorb the info that was being presented to him.

"Sir, I believe if we were to go into a low enough orbit I maybe able to provide the Away Team a bit of a safety net beyond just restoring our communications. With your permission, I'd like to modify the Main Deflector to boost the Transporter. That, in combination with the stored copies of the Away Team's patterns and pattern enhancers on the surface should allow me to perform an emergency beamout should the need arise. I would have to pull the team one at a time, and reset the buffers manually between each transport, but I could have the entire team off the surface in 4 minutes."

Croft turns towards Captain Brennon.

"Captain, I can keep us just above the Ionosphere, that should keep us clear of most of the turbulance but close enough for the commanders plan to work (sorry if rank is wrong erring on the high side)"
_________________

ArjimCalodan · Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 7:17 pm Post subject:

OOC: No promotion as of yet, still just a LT.

IC:

Lieutenant Calodan turns to the new face at the helm.

"Thank you for your suggestion.." he pauses and checks for pips "Lieutenant. If you were able to keep us in the upper edges of the ionosphere we could normalize the shields for atmospheric flight and tune their frequencies as close as possible to the local radiation. Hopefully, this would minimize the sensor reflection effect that this planet seems to have an allow us to get a much clearer picture of the surface as well as allowing a solid comm link."

He pauses and runs another quick simulation through his console. "Captain, if the Lieutenant can do the flying I believe we can make this work. Tuning the shields would also have the added benefit of blending the Hartington in with the planet. Any ships would have to be almost on top of us before they could spot us. We could pull the Williamette into a higher orbit and use them as a lookout; they'd be more then fast enough to get into comm range before anyone could sneak up on us."

As he was giving his report, several indications on his board began flashing red. He turned just in time to watch his comm link with the Williamette cut out completely. He ran the sequence to re initiate the connection and got nothing in response. A few quick scans showed the run about was in serious trouble.

"Sir, we may have a more pressing issue. It appears the Williamette is having difficulties in the storm. From the sensor data I'm able to collect and the info they managed to transmit before they lost their sensor link, it appears they are caught in some extreme turbulence in the upper atmosphere. Simulations show they'll be unable to maintain orbit in 8 minutes and will be forced to land to effect repairs."
_________________

Captain David Brennon · Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 8:00 pm Post subject:

Brennon shook his head as he heard the reports from the orbiting runabout.

"Mr. Calodan, lock onto the Willamette with a tractor beam, get them back to safety. Once they're clear of the turbulence, Mr. Croft I'd like you to maneuver us into orbit in the upper ionosphere. Once we've stabilized the situation with the Willamette get working on those deflector modifications."
_________________

ArjimCalodan · Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 8:11 pm Post subject:

Calodan's fingers flew over the Ops board.

"Lieutenant," he said addressing the helm officer who's name he hadn't gotten yet, "please begin our descent into the atmosphere to get us in range for the tractor beam." He caught the nod and watched as he went to work at the helm. He definitely seemed competent.

The ops console beeped at him and he directed his attention back to it. He was receiving a text message from one of the probes.

"Willimet in imminent danger due to extreme atmospheric conditions.
We will be landing in support of the away team in 15 minutes."

"Captain, a message from the Williamette. They are reporting their distress and a plan to land in 15 minutes. We will be in tractor range well before that time frame."

Once again, his console light up with warning indicators as the Hartington entered the atmosphere. He silenced the normal alarms that were set off when a starship entered an atmosphere and took a look at what we left. The indicators showed that they were in tractor range of the Williamette. He activated the beam as well as a custom subroutine he had written on the Hood to buffer the beam's effect on a small ship. Finally, he opened a comm channel to the small ship.

"Ops to the Williamette, we've got you in a tractor beam and are pulling you to safety. Reroute power to your structural integrity field and hold on, it's going to be a bumpy ride."
_________________

Marek · Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 11:19 pm Post subject:

Croft brought the ship into the atmosphere, she flies like a dream he thought as the vessel quickly responded to his commands, he double checked the inertial dampeners.

"Captain we are in position. Geosynchronous orbit 1500 meters into the ionosphere."
_________________